Some two million holiday lights will be displayed for Gift of Lights at Fort Worth’s Texas Motor Speedway, said Madelyn Graham, director of Gift of Lights programs.

The details

Graham said Gift of Lights is a one-and-a-half mile drive-thru light show running from Nov. 23 through Jan. 7. Attendees pay per car, Graham said, adding that she expects about 20,000 cars, which averages to about 100,000 people, to view the light show.

Additionally, a portion of every ticket sold goes to the Speedway Children’s Charities, which is shared among 17 local and regional charities.

“Helping the communities and helping families is really ingrained into what our event is,” Graham said. “We like to know that some dollars from every car that comes through the show are allocated back to the community.”


The features

Once through the ticketing line, the show will take attendees through the speedway's grand stands.

“You can see the track from different places,” Graham said. “You’re going right underneath the bleachers. You’re ingrained in the track the entire time.”

The show is made up of roughly 25 unique displays, called scenes, on both sides of the road, Graham said. On average, it will take about 25 minutes to drive through the display.


“Some of the displays can be anywhere from 45 feet tall all the way down to four or five feet tall,” Graham said. “It’s an incredibly immersive experience.”

There is no overarching theme to the show, Graham said. However, several scenes within the show will have themes.

“We’ve got Grinch,” Graham said. “We’ve got patriotic, we’ve got 'ode to Texas,' we’ve got religious [displays].”

What else?


Graham said the company that owns Gift of Lights, Winterland, is a family-owned and operated business and started the drive-thru light show at Texas Motor Speedway in 2010.

Winterland eventually connected with Speedway Motorsports and now operates light shows at four of the company’s tracks.

Setting up the display, pending weather and other conditions, takes between two and four weeks, Graham said.

Graham added that Gift of Lights will also have themed nights, which have not been announced yet. Previous theme nights include “pajama night” or “bring your pet night.” Attendees that match the theme will receive a discount on their ticket purchase.